Wichita eagle., 1887-01-25
FORTUNES BY LUCK.

FORTUNES BY LUCK.
WALL STREET MEN FREQUENTLY
GET RICH BY PURE ACCIDENT.
A Broker Tells the Story of q Remark
able Case-How a Crazy Freak Made a
Fortune for Observation-Disclosures
Case.
A well known broker OF Wall street was
chatting few days ago with some friends,
and somewhat surprised them by asserting
that luck has had more to do with the max
ing Of sudden and immense fortunes i'll the
street than is commonly supposed. He re-
ferred for one example to his own experience,
and said that twice he had found himself
100000 or more better off at night than he
was in the morning, and had at once realized,
although when be went down to the street
that day he had no idea of making such a
comfortable sum. Three times by sheer ac-
cident. for which he was not to blame, he had
lost pretty little fortune, and he believed
that his own experience could be matched by
very many of the spectators Of the street
OF course he excepted those great operators
who. from their control of immense amounts
of cash, from their ownership Of controlling
interests in large properties, and their ability
to manipulate the market, were placed be-
You'd the power of lucky or uniucky accident
to affect greatly their wealth.
Perhaps the most remarkable case that
ever came under my observation" the broker
went On to say, was that of one of the most
conservative men now on the street. He Is
now simply broker, and since Black Friday
has never specialized one dollars worth. You
remember that three or four men brought on
the panic now known as Black Friday by
cornering gold and running the price up til
many operators were ruined, the street was
in a wild panic, and universal smash seemed
imminent These men relied on what they
believed to be good assurance that the gov
eminent would put 10 gold on the market
that day, and they had locked up pretty
much all the rest of the gold i'll the country
that was available
LOST HIS HEAD.
fright in the midst of the panic, when the
street was Ike madhouse and many men
who, i'll the morning, supposed themselves
rich were almost stark staring mad over the
ruin which had befallen them III a few hours,
and when almost the highest figures had been
touched and nobody was selling short, this
broker to whom | refer suddenly lost his
head lie had covered early in the morning
at comparatively small loss, and had been
looking in during the day without any per
sonal anxiety except that caused by the fear
of a panic that would knock the bottom out
Of everything. Suddenly, he never knew
why, nor has he any but the most vague rec
objection of the transaction, he rushed into
the bawling, bowling pit and sold right and
left at their highest figures. He probably
might have avoided his contracts or his
friends have invalidated them for him, for he
was undoubtedly insane when he did this.
At all events he was still selling when sud
denly there came that little message from
Secretary Boutwell, that knocked the bottom
out of the corner in the twinkling of an eye,
Sell 5,000, 600 of gold
an half an hour more my friend would
have been lunatic pauper, and, as it was,
his brother, I think, or sorle near relative,
found him utterly Irresponsible, and with
good deal OF difficulty led him away to his
Office. There, when lie was told OF the order
of Boutwell, and that the bottom had dropped
out of the panic, he did not seem to compre-
bend the truth st all, but nlumbled some
thing which nobody understood. his con-
tracts however, were found and taken care
of by his clerks, and rapid estimate showed
that he stood to the good not far from 800
000. When they told him he did not seem to
comprehend lie had not been drinking, for
he WAS a teetOtaler. Suddenly they missed
hiEI They could not find him in the street,
nor in the gold room, nor in any Of the other
brokers' offices he was accustomed to visit.
Nobody had seen him. He had not gone 10
his home, and his family at midnight becom-
ing thoroughly alarmed, notified the police
that he was missing and temporarily de-
ranged. He was found wandering up Broad
way long past midnight, mutterlng his calls
and recognizing no one. Nor did he know
any one for nearly two weeks. lie was on
the verge of paralysis of the brain, and bare
" pulled through When after two weeks
illness he woke one morning rational his first
thought was that be was on Change. He re-
membered nothing Of his operations, but re-
called very wildly 50 much OF the panic as
he had witnessed before he began to operate
himself 1t was a loug time before his physi-
clan permitted him to be told that he had by
his crazy freak made a fortune. He las kept
il, too, for from that day to this, as l said, be
has never bought stock except for invest
ment.
ANOTHER CASE.
There was another case that I'm always
reminded Of when l ses g young man in the
street, who is very bright chap, and will be
heard from some day. His father was the
president OF a savings bank somewhere down
cast, and somewhere in 1870 took a lot Of
Southern Minnesots seconds at 90. He in
tended TO buy them for the bank, but think
ing he had good thing kept them for him
self. The panic of 1878 knocked Southern
Minuesotas down 10 nothing, and the presi-
dent threw the bonds into box in his library
of his house He was AfterHard obliged to
compromse with his creditors and threw in
lot OF stuff, among it being, as he supposed,
the Southern Minnesotas. The whole lot at
that time would not have brought over s2o1.
Later this man came to New York and went
on the street He made money ct first, but
either in the summer of 1880 or early in ISL